SENATOR Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday urged his fellow senators to stop pointing fingers and instead act as one chamber with wisdom and prudence amid debates on how to handle the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.
“Napakahirap po ng sitwasyon natin. ‘Wag na tayong magsisihan. Maybe that’s why Shakespeare said ‘if you want justice, kill all the lawyers’ kasi nga labanan ng abogado ito. It’s unfair to just blame the Senate President,” Cayetano said during the Senate’s session on June 9.
He reminded the chamber that all senators were present and aware when the House transmitted the complaint on February 5, and that no one objected to the session’s adjournment.
“Twenty three (23) naman tayong senador, conscious naman tayong lahat noong February 5, nandito naman tayo. Pwede naman tayo mag-object noong nag-adjourn, n’ung finile ’yan,” he said.
Cayetano emphasized that rather than dwelling on past decisions, the Senate should now focus on its next steps.
He acknowledged the difficult situation the Senate is in and noted that the public is watching closely.
“As the Minority Leader [Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III] said, nandiyan na ‘yan [impeachment complaint.] ‘Wag na natin tignan y’ung nakalipas, forward na tayo,” he said. “I pray for wisdom for all of us, and I ask everyone to continue to pray for wisdom.”
Amid the tensions and legal debates, Cayetano stressed the need for unity and collective decision-making.
“The reality is we will be acting as a body, and the vote will matter. We have to find it in our hearts that even if we disagree, we support the chamber,” he said.
Cayetano added that the Senate must uphold both legal and moral standards in handling the case.
“The reality is may tama at mali, moral at immoral, may legal at illegal. Hopefully doon po tayo sa tama at hopefully ang legal ‘yun din ang moral,” he said.|
